A native of Canada, growing up in Hull, Quebec, he often made up his own songs as a child, and after teaching himself how to play the guitar, regularly performed in school choirs and pageants.

During the 1970s Fred did a lot of theatrical training including serious drama, ritual dance, improv and mime work. Fred explored a variety of musical and theatrical genres, including a stint on the live performance circuit with his comedic folk/rock band, Kornstalk, which also featured Juno-award winning children's entertainer AI Simmons.

In 1977, Fred met choreographer and future wifeOdette Heyn, with whom he started a children’s dance theatre company.

In 1979, after a performance, he was approached by a member of the audience, who was so impressed by Fred’s talent and charisma that he offered to finance an album of his music. Fred accepted the generous offer, which resulted in the classic album, "The Cat Came Back". It launched his career and established him as a premiere family entertainer.

In 1985 Fred began hosting his own children’s show on CBC called "Fred Penner’s Place". Kids of the 80’s will recall the opening of the show where Fred would crawl through a hollow log and into the forest where the show was set. There was also the Word Bird who would appear each day with a new word, which was somehow related to the thin plot of the episode. And that mouse in the treehouse that I barely remember. The show lasted for 12 seasons on the CBC and was seen in 55 million American homes in its four year run on Nickelodeon.

Fred has put out 12 albums since 1980, with record sales over the million-unit mark. His latest album, "Sing with Fred" (released September 2002), is his first CD in six years. The new disc includes bonus karaoke tracks and lyrics for most of the songs on the album.

Fred has also released numerous videos, an interactive CD-ROM, and has written several children’s books. He has become known internationally and is one of the most popular children’s entertainers in the world.

He’s received many honours, awards and accolades throughout his career, including:

A Juno Award for "Fred Penner’s Place", and eight other Juno Award nominations.

He has received 4 Parents’ Choice Awards, most recently the Parents’ Choice Recommended Award (Winter 2002 Audio category) for "Sing with Fred".

Resources:
As many people pointed out, I should have kept a list of my sources. Although I used quite a few (10+), here's the few I can recall:
www.fredpenner.com
www.thewatch.ca/november02/being.php
Watching Fred Penner's Place as a kid.